


What Happened in the Enclosure

by GalahadWilder



Category: Miraculous Ladybug, Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir, miraculous
Genre: Bi Alya, F/M, animan - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-12
Updated: 2017-09-12
Packaged: 2018-12-27 07:16:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 892
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12076176
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GalahadWilder/pseuds/GalahadWilder
Summary: Ladybug just locked Alya and Nino in a cage together and the zoo, in order to keep them out of trouble--and Alya Cesaire is PISSED.





	What Happened in the Enclosure

“Ugh, I can’t believe she DID that!” Alya said, pounding on the walls of the cage. “This is so… so…”

“Hey, hey, hey,” Nino said, laying his hands on her shoulders. “It’s no big–”

“WATCH IT, LAHIFFE!” she shouted, spinning and locking his arm against his back. “Don’t TOUCH me!”

“Whoa!” Nino squirmed. “Sorry, sorry! I was just trying to help. I’ll back off.”

She released his arm, and he turned and sat against the wall of the cage.

She climbed atop the rocks in the center of the cage and pointedly refused to look at him.

“You okay?” he said.

She crossed her arms and turned away from him.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, Alya straining her eyes to see the battle - after all, Ladybug was fighting HER father - while Nino watched her.

“Why were you here, anyway?” Nino said. “I mean, not that I mind, I just didn’t think you’d be coming…”

“Well, if you must know,” Alya said, “I was coaching Marinette. On a date. With–” She cut herself off. Maybe Marinette didn’t want that particular secret spilling everywhere.

“Me?” Nino asked, quietly. He sounded almost… hopeful? No, that didn’t make any sense.

“What do you care?” Alya said. “ _She’s_ not the one you have a crush on.”

“Oh, you… heard that, huh,” Nino said, rubbing the back of his neck.

She glared at him.

“Look, I’m sorry, it just slipped out!” he said, waving his hands in front of his face like he was trying to ward off an attack. “I… honestly I invited Marinette here because I have a crush on _her,_ y'know?” He sighed. “We’ve known each other for forever, and she just… gets me.”

Alya crossed her arms. “Then why did you say you MY name?”

“I panicked,” he said. “She was staring at me, and I just… those eyes, you know? And I… couldn’t do it. I freaked out.”

Alya drummed her fingers on the tree in the center of the enclosure. “So you don’t have a crush on me.”

Nino shook his head. “Don’t think so.”

“Good,” Alya said, staring off into the distance. “Don’t like the idea of letting you down. You’re too sweet of a guy for that.”

They sat in silence for a few minutes before Nino suddenly spoke up. “Not that…” he began, then stopped. “It’s not like I don’t think you’re WORTH having a crush on.”

Alya turned to look at him quizzically, but said nothing.

“I mean, you’re such an incredible person,” Nino continued, still looking at the dirt between his feet. “You’re brave, and you’re bold, and you’re selfless, and you’re… driven, in a way I’m not. Hell, even your Akuma was just trying to do the right thing, right?”

“So was yours,” Alya murmured. “You wanted to give Adrien a birthday.”

“Yeah, and look how bad I fucked THAT up,” Nino said. “Even your worst instincts still knew what they were doing. You still had a plan.” His mouth twisted wryly. “Marinette’s been my friend for years, but anyone can see the difference you’re making on her. She’s… happier. More confident. And I think it’s because she has you.”

Alya simply stared at him. He kept his head down, so he couldn’t see her expression, or the wheels that were turning in her mind.

Alya had never really made a secret of the fact that she wasn’t overly fond of boys. Oh, sure, she liked them well enough, but they tended to be loud, rude, douchebags, what have you–the kind of people who would stifle everything that she liked about herself. Very few people at her school knew of her preference for girls, but then, none of the girls in her class were particularly interesting like that either. Except maybe Juleka, but she had Rose.

But Nino… she’d never noticed him before, to be honest, outside of Marinette’s obsession with Adrien. Never thought about him at all. He’d just seemed like a “bro,” and his attitude during the few times they’d interacted had seemed to carry that out. Except that now, she started to realize how much he actually saw, how much he actually observed. Nino wasn’t quiet because he was self-absorbed; Nino was quiet because he was _listening_.

She found that she rather liked the notion.

Nino groaned. “Aw, crap,” he said. “I think I actually do have a crush on you.”

Alya’s stomach flipped. _Is this what Marinette feels like around Adrien?_ she thought.

Nino took his hat off and ran his fingers through his hair. “I’m sorry if I made this awkward, I know you’re not into me like that–”

Alya stood up. “Come on,” she said, walking towards the door. “I have an idea.”

“What?”

She pressed her palm against the plastic of the enclosure wall. “My dad built these cages,” she said. “He taught me a trick to them. I should be able to get us out in about two minutes.”

“Oh, yeah, great!” Nino said, flipping his hat back onto his head. “Then we can head home.”

“Nope.” Alya shook her head. “Then we’re getting ice cream. You’re buying.”

Nino stared at her, eyes narrow. “That sounds… kinda like a date.”

Her fingers worked across the complex mechanisms of the lock with a smile. “You’re not the only one who’s allowed to change their mind.”


End file.
